Collection Summary: An interview of Carl Mydans conducted 1964 Apr. 29, by Richard Doud, for the Archives of American Art.

Mydans speaks of his background in photography and photojournalism; joining the Farm Security Administration staff; Roy Stryker as a catalyst for creativity; some of his outstanding experiences with the FSA; styles of different photographers; the significance of the FSA in American history, and how it changed Americans' awareness of other Americans; subjects of his photographs and their treatment of him; the influence of his fellow FSA photographers; technological changes in photography.

This interview conducted as part of the Archives of American Art's New Deal and the Arts project, which includes over 400 interviews of artists, administrators, historians, and others involved with the federal government's art programs and the activities of the Farm Security Administration in the 1930s and early 1940s.

Funding for the digital preservation of this interview was provided by a grant from the Save America's Treasures Program of the National Park Service.

How to Use this Interview

Transcript: microfilm reel 3697 available at Archives of American Art offices and through interlibrary loan.

Transcript: Patrons must use microfilm copy.

The transcript of this interview is in the public domain and may be used without permission. Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Carl Mydans, 1964 Apr. 29, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution

For more information on using the Archives’ resources, see the FAQ or Ask Us.

Interview Transcript

This transcript is in the public domain and may be used without permission. Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Carl Mydans, 1964 Apr. 29, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.

Note: This typewritten transcript was scanned and run through optical character recognition software (OCR). However, the resulting OCR text has not been reviewed or edited for accuracy.

This transcript is in the public domain and may be used without permission. Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Carl Mydans, 1964 Apr. 29, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.